From Carnac to Callanish : Prehistoric Stone Rows of Britain, Ireland and Brittany

Description

This book discusses the lines of standing stones that until now have been the neglected wonders of prehistoric Europe, rows that were foci of rituals in Britain, Ireland and Brittany for over two thousand years. Places such as Carnac in Brittany and Callanish in the Hebrides are visited by many visitors each year, but before now there has been no book that seriously explains the history, significance and background to these impressive sites. Aubrey Burl shows that the settings vary from pairs of isolated stones in the far south-west of Ireland to networks of long lines in Scotland, Dartmoor and Brittany, and describes the types in a sequence of architectural chapters that stress the increasing social and commercial connections between regions hundred of miles apart. He uses information from a wide variety of sources - excavation reports, megalithic art, astronomical analyses and legends - to provide explanations of why the rows were erected, when, and what they may have been used for.show more

Table of contents

Part 1 Stone circles and avenues: stone rows and their problems; history of research; the distribution of stone rows; circles, entrances and portals; avenues and stone circles; avenues, society and purpose; detached avenues and double rows. Part 2 From circles to lines: long, single rows; multiple rows. Part 3 From long to short: short single rows; pairs of standing stones.show more